A very interesting development indeed. What it’s that he could not do in Addis that he come to do in Xamar? Perhaps it’s the photo op that which he could not resist having that he risked to be in Xamar!

Those who are doing the ismaadimis thing are misguided shabaabs (and yes there are always those who are incline to operate from the extreme edges of our faith) and the only way to bring them into the mainstream fold is to firstly remove Ethiopia’s military presence from our soil. Only then can we genuinely talk about marginalizing these folks who tend to insist on trivial matters when in peace, and resort to excessive, and at times mindless, tactics when in war. Lets not mince words here; the phenomenon of suicide bombardment as a conventional tactic to fight your enemy is quite atrocious as a method. It’s also objectionable on many grounds, especially when it’s used as liberal as it appears to be developing in Somalia. ^^But that’s a challenge for another day…now it’s the combination of lack of progress on the process of reconciling Somalis, and the ever-growing clout our archenemy has on our affairs that’s getting to me!

duke, Ethiopia is America’s contact in the Horn. The job of containing Somalia is apparently delegated to Zenawi. Financial support, diplomatic cover, and occasional logistical help are given to his admin to get the job of removing Somalia’s perceived threat done. Citing technical maneuverings in the international stages to pave the way for the aforementioned project as a proof for the legality of this grand military invasion is quite weak adeer. In fact, the naivety of it is quite unpardonable when Somalia’s case is so clearly inline with the unmistakable trends of Bush’s irresponsible military moves. When one closely analyses on the destructive methods used in the process of taming Somalis, it becomes obvious that the goal of this mission could only be to deepen the Somali conflict to the degree where even the most optimist amongst us would accept the need of outside forces, not to help us build our nation, but to save us from one another and thusly accept overtime Ethiopia, or Kenya for that matter, and however we hate the idea, as an indispensable factor for our own stability and survival as a community. Let’s reason adeer about this one without resorting back to your indhacadde lines. What has Somalia benefited from Ethiopia’s presence in Mogadishu and America’s bombardment other than to earn the reputation of being a terror heaven? If the ultimate goal of this project were to revive Somalia as a nation and get its fallen state back on its feet again, we would have seen greater efforts on a genuine reconciliation track, not the one with a former warlord as its head, and Mogadishu, a city that remains unsecured and under the shades of Ethiopian tanks, as its gathering place. We would have seen greater involvement from the other interested parties, and funds would have been pumped to jump start it. But what do we have instead adeer? America, the country who’s spearheading this mission, while giving millions of dollars to Ethiopia (its client who has done the bulk of this dirty job) has only pledged what amounts to a mere pocket change, and even that, as I heard it, has been split into portions to support Ethiopia’s security sweeps in Xamar. Congressional delegations have repeatedly visited the region and most of them ended up meeting ‘their partners and allies’ in the region, and not tfg members or any other Somalis for that matter. Is it not true then that Ethiopia’s stature as an important ally in the war of terror has been greatly enhanced while Somalia has been depicted to be a no mans land where bad guys roam freely and threaten regional security? Aren’t what you mistake for milestones to erect the third republic, as you would like to call it, security measures, in the view of the powers that be, to contain Somalia and efforts to prevent its ‘dangerous Islamic ideology’ from seeping into other states in the region then? That, in a nutshell, is what you have celebrated yaa Duke. And that’s the chief achievements of Ethiopia’s military invasion. The world, though not interfering America’s mission in Somalia, is clearly not supporting it either---it has adapted a wait-and-see strategy. Ethiopia and Uganda aside, and Kenya to a lesser degree, most African states politely declined to participate in this project---Africa’s most influential states are not active or visible in this effort. The Arabs are muted and tightlipped. European engagement is reduced to a mere humanitarian support. Why do you reckon that is yaa Duke? Contrary to what you believe the world has abandoned us---Somalis. Somalia is left in the hands of America’s intelligence community, and in pursue of the narrow and elusive goal of combating terror in that region, Ethiopia’s rogue admin has been hired to help them achieve that goal. Clearly Ethiopia has done a great job in that regard. And although one could call Ethiopia’s presence whatever one likes, the undisputable fact remains that the Somali conflict has been exacerbated by it, and that is Somalia’s sad reality today. Whilst all that is clear and evident for all, and even as most Somalis including the silent majority of them are either violently against or quite cheerless about these criminal actions, the real tragedy in this is the fact that others like you think of it as the birth pangs of Somalia’s third republic...

Vikings, welcome back old man! I do agree with you that the Somali settlement in East-light has negative aspects to it. But the negativity you cited is not unique to that community in Eastlight. In fact, in North America we have daring strip dancers, crazed qad merchants, spies, abandoned teens (I once worked with some youth orgs and you cant even begin to imagine how our youth are impacted), and the cultural phenomenon of the single moms! Europe has its ills as well. But the ones in Kenya are respected and people look up to them, instead of looking down on them---that’s what I was trying to point out… Paragonow, Somalis made great strides in Kenya’s transportation sector. I heard they now own most respectable bus lanes between Nairobi and Coast. In my days Malindi Bus was neat and trendy---how is it doing now? Ps---are you on your way to Kisamayo? Si baad usii dhadhawaanaysaaye .

Seeing the weakness with which brother Duke formulated his argument for Ethiopia’s authority in the south, I must believe this write up of his is a mere political jest; for he is neither young nor fool to suppose he (1) established a manifest contradiction against Ethiopia’s illegal military presence on the Somali soil, or (2) he reasonably explained its unparalleled political influence on our affairs. Technicalities aside, Ethiopia, empowered by America, is unfortunately calling the shots today. That, my brother, is not a matter of hypothetical excellences; it’s real and indubitable painful fact on the ground! What can we do about it is a legitimate query. To critique the ceaseless protests and wailings, as NGONGE and Baashi did, is facilitating a needed discussion that we must have on this occupation, and, frankly, I do appreciate and believe that it cultivates our intellectual thinking of not only opposing something, but also proposing alternatives, and suggesting practical solutions for it. But to deny the existence of something that exists in both reality and understanding is the peak of intellectual dishonesty…

It's quite sad that somali lifes become so cheap and worthless. I am hearing a lot of casualties as well. Allow u naxiiriso. Falaarta cirka loo ganay nin walbow filow weeye sheekadu hadda.

Emperor-ow(caku magac qalaad ), i dont think you have that many choices here except agree with me for it's the truth that i speak .

^^^Miskiin baan ahaa adeer those days . From Showground to Utonge to Bambuuri, then off to Eastlight, in which i swum its waryaa-smelling dirt and ate its dust ! In total, I spent half a decade in Kenya. I loved it. I've been to Dar asalaam, and I found Kenyans to be the most civil and reer magaal in that region. Forget about its corrupt police officers and the occasional inconveniences, and you would find Kenya as the country that not hosted Somalis but accommodated them and adopted them. Few years back I visited Nairobi and it was amazing how Somalis dominated in the business circles in that short span of time. Eastlight, or islii as Somalis calls it, seemed to be where Somali entrepreneurial magic produced its wonders; the hotels, the bazaars, ala Somali style, the restaurants, the Xawaala buildings, and the Internet cafes are places where Somalis run with their never dying spirit of renewal…only if that same peculiarly positive attitude is transferred [edit] to replace the negative tribalism that ruined their homeland!

Xirsiyo or Haweeyo for girls Warsame or Samatar for boys

Faarax, perhaps it’s the age that’s doing this to me but I am nostalgic about the Somalia we had however corrupt it was. Somalis are not particularly different then the other communities they live with in the Horn region. They are not more divided than the ones living together peacefully in Kenya and Ethiopia. It’s the absence of their state that exposes ceebahooda and makes them vulnerable for outside manipulation. Ethiopian tanks will leave one day, willingly or unwillingly. When that time comes though how would you salvage and manage whatever is left behind if you are already falling for the false notion of two Somalis within the republic itself adeer? Pray for the return of a Somali state that has the basic attributes of nationhood, and that which takes its sovereignty and territorial integrity quite seriously!

Paragon enjoy your vacaton adeer. Mombasa is like Kismayo in many ways; bad, berri, iyo beero isku meel kuwada yaal! Check for me if NewPeople’s hotel is still in operation. I heard maryooley own a lot of business in the city now, especially transportation and lodging. If you get the time, try to put a report together like sister Rahima did awhile back when she come back from Xamar…

^^NN, come again adeer. You can do better than that! Emperor, extremist jihadist I am not. I am for peace and prosperity for all. Mindful of what has been destroyed in the last 16 years, I do appreciate, and at times excessively commend, the modest achievements some regions made including Puntland and Somaliland. It’s the subservient political attitude particular regions adopted however that I critique and argue against. That does not sit well with folks like you who tend to equate the political stances, in this case, of Puntland’s admin with the well being of the people of that region. At these turbulent times the sentiment to stick to ones tribe and clannish leaders is strong, and understandably so. But strong argument could be made that it’s this very sentiment of belonging to a particular segment and preserving its interest by any means that kept us in where we are and gave advantage to our enemy. While your sentiment of being defensive about the whole incident is understandable, it’s neither necessary nor correct stance to take. When leaders like ours manage from the lowest ends, embrace fraud and corruption as a means to govern and in the process enrich themselves at the expense of the general masses, when they bend all the values and compromise the traditional pride of that community by seeking alliance with Ethiopia, their wicked ways must be challenged and opposed. Whatever positions these leaders hold, I believe, are expendable, their reputation impeachable, for it’s the interest of people and that of country that must be protected, and not theirs! I know, to suppress these sentiments is easier than done, and I may be ignoring some harsh actualities on the ground that necessitates these political postures. Yet one must resist the temptation and the irresistible appeal of group thinking mentality… That aside, and coming back for the Baargaal incident, in all fairness there are a lot fo things that are not known yet! We don’t really know what happened. But the story asd reported by news portals is just not plausible! We shall wait and see~~

^^Cadde secured a protectorate status with Ethiopia yaa NN, no?

This militia is really silly! Why shut down the very source of revenue and yet complain about lack of salaries? How would that solve the problem? Why not collect port duties instead, and let the business flow continue if it controls the city, as it does by all accounts?

Originally posted by Faarax-Brown: But, have you ever pondered what's the point of having a unified border with divided people residing in them? The Somali people have been fragmented & divided for over century. Its started with the partition & the scramble for Africa by the Europeans, continued into the years of the Shifta war in NFD, the independence of DJ & the continuing struggle at region 5. Nothing really major happened until 5 months ago when the Tigre came in at the behest of a few greedy men. Granted they took advantage of a fragmented society, but they also could have done this 17 years ago. Furthermore, what makes JSL special? Why is the existence of greater Somali unity dependent on JSL? What happens(happened) to other lands? Why is it not a priority and or a catalyst for a strong Somali nation? Faarax, I am afraid you have fallen for Ethiopia’s propaganda without knowing it. Why else have you skipped the republic that existed nearly half a century in your narrative adeer? Without boring you further, this is what I think should be the priority for the Somalis wherever they are: 1- Work very hard for the return of Somali republic as the world knows it, and accepts without any disputes surrounding it as the case is with ****** region and NFD. 2- Fight those who want to subordinate this broken nation to Ethiopia in the name of security or under any other fashionable trick. Provided the republic comes back and gets resurrected, other issues can be taken up with realistic and practical approaches. I reject the notion that naively asserts since the original five Somali regions have never been united the talk about the unity of our fallen state is meaningless. That kind of thinking is really dangerous adeer. It feeds the perception of Somalia suffering from an intractable conflict that’s beyond hope while the truth is that Somalia has been externally manipulated by determined regional entities that want our complete breakdown, and work for our ultimate demise, and that when left with our own devices, our differences can indeed be, with some effort, bridgeable. Case in point: Islamic courts of Mogadishu. They were inadequate in many ways yet the golden commodity they had was a degree of genuineness in their political outlook, and you would attest to what was established and achieved in a short span of time was quite memorable. What we wish and desire is not easy to achieve but don’t underestimate the danger these wicked political ideologies like secessionist pose to the very thing you are trying to achieve adeer.

^^You got it yaa Che. The funny thing is how weak they present their case to us; a boat, from Raas-kambooni, Somalia’s furthest southern tip, with few men on it, who are, btw, from the Baargaal city itself by some news account, would bring down the state. Now the state is in a hot pursuit to apprehend these al-qaida folks to deprive them from a safe heaven in Puntland . Wallee waa la gumoobay...

Originally posted by AYOUB: Come off it Xiin, you're a Puntland supporter. ^^ I suppose opposing secessionist agenda implies a tacit Puntland support! And to be fair, the two are not equal in their offense to the Somali nation. One still respects the Somali unity however wobbly while the other declared its intent to commit the cardinal sin of dismembering Somalia. Though occasionally it produces mindless men who want to rule over others but know not how, Puntland’s original framework was to organize itself and tend its political affairs without seeking a permanent divorce from the rest of Somalia. Of course time is always pregnant with unknowns, but as things stand now Somaliland is the only entity whose leaders think they don’t belong to Somali. Chew on that yaa Ayoub! But knowing you and how you formulate you arguments, it’s my qabiil you meant to point out and not my political affiliation…

Kismaayo (30 May 07), Waxaa shalay casar gaabadkii xanibay hawlihii ka socday dekedda Kismaayo oo ay ku xidhnaayeen ilaa iyo 6 doomood oo u rarnayd ganacsatada gobolka isla mar ahaantaan banaanka uga soo caydhiyay shaqaalihii dekedda maleeshiyada gacanta ku haysa maamulka magaalada Kismaayo. Maleeshiyaddan oo ka cadhaysan mushaar la'aan ay ahaayeen intii ay gacanta ku hayeen magaalada Kismaayo iyo 2-dii bilood ee ka horaysay ayaa shalay ku amray shaqaalihii dekeddu inayna soo shaqo tagin ka dibna xidhay dekedda ayagoo waliba ku hanjabay inayna dib danbe u ogolaanayn inay dekeddu shaqayso tan iyo inta laga siinayo mushaaradooda oo dhawr jeer oo horana balanqaadyo loo sameeyay ayna waxba ka hirgalin. Maleeshiyadan xanibtay hawlihii ka socday dekedda oo ah tan ayadu gacanta ku haysa maamulka dekedda iyo kan garoonka diyaaradaha ayaa ku tilmaamay waxaan loo dulqaadan karin, lana aqbali karin inaan ilaa hadda wax mushaaraad ah aanaan ka helin dekedda iyo garoonka oo si caadi ah u shaqaynaya. Waa markii labaad ee maleeshiyada gacanta ku haysa Kismaayo ay xanibaan hawlaha ka socda dekedda ayadoo bishan 13 keediina ay xidheen, balse dib loo furay kadib markay balanqaadyo ka heleen maamulka dekedda. Maleeshiyadan ayaa sidoo kale ayagoo ka gadoodsan warar sheegayay in dekedda mushaar laga siiyo maleeshiyada Buuloguduud ee ay iska soo horjeedaan ayaa todobaadkii hore banaanka uga baxay magaalada ayagoo ku hanjabay inay weerar ku qaadayaan Buuloguduud hadii aan sida ugu dhakhsiinyaha badan mushaar loo siinin. Xaaladda nabad galiyo ee magaalada Kismaayo ayaa ka sii daraysa ayadoo ay jiraan dhac iyo boob loo gaysto bulshada rayadka xiliyada habeenkii isla markaana hadh cad la dhaco gawaarida raaxada. Waxaa sidoo kale magaalada ka jirta cabsi ah inuu dagaal ka qarxo xili kasta oo dhex maro maleeshiyadda gacanta ku haysa iyo maleeshida ku sugan magaalada banaan keeda. KismaayoNews.com

Accept the colonial borders as the solid and tangible basis of two sisterly nations emerging from the death of the Somali Republic, and accept the sanctity of borders of neighboring countries of Ethiopia, Kenya and Djibouti. Any dreams of a greater Somali Republic has come and gone. Faarax, As I said long before on these boards, Somaliland’s political elites, the ones who rule it now, harbor the most irrational political ideology any Somali movement has ever embarked. If you don’t believe me, reread that passage again, which summarizes quite eloquently the heart of these elites’ strategies to complete Somalia’s dismemberment. As you can see, it would be very difficult to wish these things away or cover them up in your ‘lets focus on the enemy’ line. If you put things in context, you would see that the notion of dividing Somalia into clannish enclaves could only benefit Ethiopia’s hegemonic regional ambitions. At times I really cant help but wonder if these rascals are praying the continuation of Somalia’s civil war just to prove the mainstay of their separatism argument, namely that Somalia, as the world knew it, is gone and vanished into history’s dustbins. One cant be silent on the roots of Ethiopia’s domination, and talk instead about the political and military manifestation of the said prominence adeer…. edit: Castrow, I am glad you caught my bug! I knew you were coming down with something since Ethiopia’s tanks rolled into Xamar. That something turns out to be a complete realization that Ethiopia’s policy is not particularly new; it chiefly operates on one of the oldest tricks in the colonial books. To conquer any particular problem, one needs to divide that problem into surmountable tasks. Somalia is the problem. Puntland, Somaliland, and the tfg are tasks Ethiopia has to manage. So neither Xiin nor you is obsessed with Somaliland, or with any particular subdivision. If any thing we are obsessed with the facts as they are…

LOL@doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. ^^^It’s a popular cliché, to be sure, but it came out from the wrong cavity …

Good read. Buri waa nin wax kala garanayya... Thaks MMA.

This guy is a real politician. He is well versed with Somali politics. Xudduudaanu soo xiraynaa . Says he. And that’s what the folks whom he appeals to like to hear. Recognition, if it comes at all, does not come on the cheap. He implies. He has a point there too. Facts may slow him down or truth and the actualities on the ground may rudely intrude once more, but the man, Waraabe that is, is playing his cards right in this pre-election maneuverings…

Ayoub, how many trucks were burnt? Who burnt them, regular ONLF militias or clans affiliated with them? How it got resolved? Is the passage open today or do SL trucking business still face similar security hazards as they did then? I am not probing you to score a point in this little exchange of ours but I am really curious as to why what seems an isolated incident with clear assignable causes from my end strike a deep cord in you!

^^^And there you detain the logic of if Ethiopia were to leave today we would plunge into another civil war even further ! Only if the general masses were so adequately informed...

^^Now i got it. Perhaps Riyaale’s actions were quite harsh and effective for ONLF to resort to such actions. Or it was the clan thing as you asserted. But you need to ask yourself why ONLF are not doing those criminal actions as you alleged today if not a direct reaction of SL’s policy then. It clearly was. Midda kale it’s your inopportune interjection that I am objecting to, and not that I am saying ONLF never did bad things. Of course it’s a rebel movement in a very harsh political settings and with the least training. Thusly they are not adequately equipped to always make sound military and political judgments. Why would you choose to inject past grievance in this celebratory thread is the misgiving here! Support them adeer without ifs and buts as long they engage the enemy, and when they err, as you assert in this incident, give them the benefit of the doubt. As for your burnt trucks, we will compensate if proved! If you don’t think what I am saying is reasonable roll with your entity in agreement as others did ~~